Alexandra Bracken

Alexandra Bracken (born 27 February 1987, Phoenix, Arizona) is an American writer, a #1 New York Times bestselling American author, known for The Darkest Minds series and Passenger series.

Alexandra Bracken
BornFebruary 27, 1987  (age 33)
Phoenix, Arizona
OccupationAuthor
LanguageEnglish language 
GenreYoung-adult fantasy
Website
alexandrabracken.com

Early life

Alexandra Bracken was born in Phoenix, Arizona.[1] She returned there later in life after having lived in New York City for many years. In New York City, she worked in the children's publishing industry, first as an editorial assistant, then in marketing.[2] She graduated from Chaparral High School in 2005, and attended The College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, graduating magna cum laude with a degree in History and English in May 2009.[3]

Career

Bracken wrote her first unpublished novel during her freshman year at W&M, and began her debut novel, Brightly Woven, as a birthday present for her friend during her sophomore year when she was nineteen years old.[4] In their review of the book, Publishers Weekly dubbed Bracken "a debut author to watch."[5] Her debut placed third in the 2010 GoodReads Choice Awards for Best Debut Author.[6]

In 2012, Disney Hyperion published the near-future, Young Adult thriller The Darkest Minds, the first book in the series of the same name. The series focuses on Ruby, a 16-year-old girl with special abilities that she has only just begun to understand. She breaks out of a "rehabilitation camp" in which she has been imprisoned and teams up with a rag-tag group of fellow camp escapees to find the Slip Kid, a leader who offers shelter to young people in danger and who possesses the secret to control one's powers. The title of the first novel and the series was changed from Black is the Color to The Darkest Minds in November 2011.[7][8]

In October 2013, the second installment of The Darkest Minds series, Never Fade released. This book continues to follow the main character Ruby as she learns to control her abilities, reunite with her friends, and fight back against the government that wants to imprison them.[9]

In October 2014, the conclusion to the series, In the Afterlight was released. As they fight for a place in the world, Ruby and her friends formulate a plan to rescue the children trapped in the so-called rehabilitation camps.[10]

Film rights for the series were optioned by Twentieth Century Fox with Shawn Levy to produce under his 21 Laps banner in 2011.[11]

On November 13, 2014, it was announced that Bracken had been tapped to write Star Wars Episode IV A New Hope: The Princess, the Scoundrel, and the Farmboy, a novelization of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. Bracken replaces R.J. Palacio, author of Wonder, who had been slated to write this novelization but had to drop out due to a scheduling conflict.[12]

In January 2016, Bracken's book Passenger was released.[13] It debuted at #1 on The New York Times bestsellers list. [14]

In January 2017, the sequel to Passenger, Wayfarer, was released. This book continues the story of Etta and Nicholas. Now robbed of the powerful object that was the only hope to save her mother, Etta is stranded again, cut off from Nicholas, the one she loves and natural time. Etta stumbles into the heart of the Thorns, renegade travelers who stole the astrolabe from her, she vows to destroy it once and for all. Etta must choose a path, that could transform her future. Nicholas is still devastated by Etta's disappearance, he enlists help to track her and the astrolabe down. As they travel to change the timeline, they discover the ancient power that threatens to eradicate the timeline altogether. This book travels through time and concludes the Passenger series.[15] Like Passenger, Wayfarer debuted at #1 on The New York Times bestsellers list.[16]

Bibliography

Novels for young adults
  • Brightly Woven (March 23, 2010, ISBN 978-1-60684-038-2)
  • Lore (January 7, 2021)
  • The Darkest Minds series:
    1. The Darkest Minds (December 18, 2012)
    2. Never Fade (October 15, 2013)
    3. In The Afterlight (October 28, 2014)
    4. The Darkest Legacy (July 31, 2018)
    • Novellas:
      1.5. "In Time" (2013)
      2.5. "Sparks Rise" (2014)
      3.5. "Beyond the Night" (2015)
    • 1.6. Short stories:
      • "Liam's Story" (2016)
      • "Vida's Story" (2016)
      • "Clancy's Story" (2016)
  • Passenger series:
    1. Passenger (January 5, 2016)
    2. Wayfarer (January 3, 2017)

Novels for middle grades
  • The Star Wars Illustrated Edition Trilogy Series:
    1. Episode IV A New Hope: The Princess, the Scoundrel, and the Farmboy (September 22, 2015)
  • The Dreadful Tale of Prosper Redding series:
    1. The Dreadful Tale of Prosper Redding (September 5, 2017)
    2. The Last Life of Prince Alastor (February 5, 2019)

Short stories for young adults

Collections:

  • Through the Dark (October 6, 2015), collection of 3 novellas:
    "In Time", "Sparks Rise", "Beyond the Night"
  • The Rising Dark: A Darkest Minds Collection (March 2, 2016), collection of 3 short stories:[17]
    "Liam's Story", "Vida's Story", "Clancy's Story"

Adaptations

References
  1. "About Alex". Alexandra Bracken. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
  2. "About Alex". Alexandra Bracken.
  3. "AlexandraBracken.com Profile". alexandrabracken.com. Retrieved May 2, 2010.
  4. "How I Wrote Two and a Half Novels in College and Survived". livejournal.com. Archived from the original on July 11, 2012. Retrieved May 4, 2010.
  5. "Publishers Weekly Children's Book Reviews". publishersweekly.com. Retrieved May 2, 2010.
  6. "Goodreads Announces the Winners of the 2010 Goodreads Choice Awards". publishersweekly.com. Retrieved March 3, 2011.
  7. "New title! New title! New title!". tumblr.com. Archived from the original on April 25, 2012. Retrieved November 17, 2011.
  8. "RT Buzz Before the Books". rtbookreviews.com. Retrieved February 28, 2011.
  9. results, search (30 September 2014). "Never Fade". Disney-Hyperion – via Amazon.
  10. results, search (29 December 2015). "In the Afterlight". Disney-Hyperion – via Amazon.
  11. Abrams, Rachel (April 20, 2011). "Fox options 'Black is the Color'". Variety.com. Archived from the original on 2011-04-25. Retrieved April 20, 2011.
  12. "Disney Publishing Worldwide Announces Bestselling Author Alexandra Bracken to Pen STAR WARS EPISODE IV: A NEW HOPE Illustrated Novel". Disney Publishing Worldwide press release. November 13, 2014. Retrieved November 14, 2014.
  13. results, search (6 December 2016). "Passenger". Disney-Hyperion – via Amazon.
  14. "New York Times Bestsellers List January 24, 2016". New York Times Bestsellers List. Retrieved September 5, 2018.
  15. results, search (3 January 2017). "Wayfarer". Disney-Hyperion – via Amazon.
  16. "New York Times Bestsellers List". New York Times Bestsellers List January 22, 2017. Retrieved September 5, 2018.
  17. "The Rising Dark: A Darkest Minds Collection". www.goodreads.com. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
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